2013 - The Year I Became A Comic Reader.
At 27 years old, you could say I'm a little late to the party. Most people discover comic books in their teens but despite my other hobbies at the time (anime, video games and reading) I never got into comics as a teenager. In fact, the only reason I even picked up a comic last year was because of the Deadpool video game. I was writing news updates for a video game site, The Geek Next Door, when I heard about a game based on a Marvel comic character I'd never heard of before named Deadpool (turns out I had heard of him since I'd seen the Wolverine Origin movie but I think we can all agree that THAT WASN'T DEADPOOL!). I did a google search, looked at the comic panes that came up and along with the promo shots and trailer for the game decided Deadpool was somebody I just had to know.
So I went online, made a Comixology account, and proceeded to download several free issues of comics starring Deadpool. I quickly confirmed that Deadpool was in fact awesome and so I announced to my partner that I was now a comic reader and asked for a lift to the comic store (turns out our nearest comic store at the time was an hour drive away). I bought Deadpool Classic Vol.1 and Deadpool Kills the Marvel Universe as well as a bunch of 50c and $1 comics from the bargin bin. I read them all that night. The next day I went to all the local libraries and borrowed as many DC and Marvel comics that I could find. Turns out my local libraries stock a pretty good collection of comics.
It quickly became apparent to me that a) I wasn't a fan of the DC comics I'd borrowed, b) that I had seen a lot of movies that I hadn't known were based off comics, c) I preferred the X-Men and mutants to the Avengers and d) Robert Liefeld was my favourite artist (I have more artist on that list now but Liefeld is still sitting at number one).
I started focusing purely on Marvel comics, especially ones to do with Deadpool or mutants, and that's when my perdurable 'man-crush' on Cable began. I had to know more about this time-traveller from the future so I reserved every (I do mean every) copy of a comic the library system had that featured Cable. And that's when I found my entry point to the Marvel Universe - The Messiah Complex. It was great. It introduced me to a range of characters that in turn introduced me to other comics because I wanted to know more about those characters. I came away from the Messiah Complex with a handful of favourite characters (Cable, Hope, Nightcrawler, Logan), a few characters I disliked (Emma Frost...) and a heap of others that I wanted to find out more about (Domino, Colossus, Kitty, Cyclops, Magneto, Multiple Man...).
I'm not sure what the standard approach is but I tend to choose what comics to read based on the characters I like to read about. I mainly follow Deadpool, Cable, Hope, Nightcrawler and Logan. At present, I'd have to say my favourite comic characters are Cable, Deadpool, Nightcrawler, Hope, Domino, Fantomex, Logan and Dr Nemesis. I'm currently collecting Deadpool Classic, Cable Classic, Deadpool/Cable, Deadpool (by Way), Deadpool Now, Wolverine and the X-Men, Uncanny X-Force, Cable and X-Force, Amazing X-Men, Thunderbolts Now and I plan on taking up Night of the Living Deadpool and Deadpool: The Gauntlet Infinite Comic series. I'm really enjoying this new realm of geekery and the people I'm meeting via Twitter, Facebook etc who share a love of comics. I genuinely wish that it hadn't taken so many years for me to get into comics. In less than I year I've gone from 'Never read a comic' to 'Owning several trade paper backs, multiple folders of single issue comics, multiple Marvel Pop! Vinyls, movies, video games, etc'. My last birthday present from my partner was a Deadpool themed suitcase full of goodies.
I hope my son grows up to have an interest in comics (I vehemently campaigned through the entire pregnancy to name him Cable but my partner just wouldn't relent. When my partner goes to work I often call him Cable regardless...and Galactus (he eats everything)....and MODOK (he has a big head)). As it is, my partner and I call him Red Hulk when he carries on. My son tends to clench his fists and growl whilst going red in the face when he isn't happy. Despite being only 7 months old, he already owns several comics.
I'm just doing my part to raise him with a fine appreciation for art. ^_^
So, in conclusion, 2013 is a year to remember.